Louis DeJoy was among the federal officials who learned a hard lesson about power in the new Trump era. The former CEO of a logistics company and a Trump megadonor, DeJoy was tapped to become Postmaster General in 2020. Hired to retool an agency on the brink of insolvency, he cut billions of dollars in contracts and embarked on a 10-year plan to centralize the U.S. Postal Service’s delivery network. But in March, he became embroiled in a struggle between Musk, who wants to privatize the Postal Service, and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who was maneuvering to fold it into his department. Meanwhile, officials from U.S. Customs and Border Protection had asked the USPS to supply data to help its project of tracking migrants, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.
Inside Trump’s First 100 Days, and the story behind PMG Dejoy abruptly resigning
On March 10, Musk dispatched two young former Tesla staffers to the USPS to embed inside the agency, nominally to cut costs. When DeJoy refused to give the DOGE officials access to sensitive USPS servers that contain the mailing addresses of every American, the aides complained to Musk, who then complained to Trump, the sources tell TIME. Sergio Gor, Trump’s director of personnel, called DeJoy and USPS board members, saying the President wanted him out, according to two sources familiar with the matter, and suggesting to DeJoy that Trump and Musk could make life uncomfortable for him. When it became clear the problem could only escalate, DeJoy, who had already announced plans to retire, resigned to take the target off the agency’s back. Gor did not respond to multiple requests for comment.
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